Business Stages

The Entrepreneur Next Door: A look at your competition

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Christina Hernandez Sherwood, eMed Editor, MedCity News

It’s sometimes lonely to be an entrepreneur. But at any given moment, some 10 million Americans are involved in the process of starting a potential new business, according to a Kauffman Foundation report. And the demographics of these aspiring business owners might be different than expected. Minorities are 50 percent more likely to start a business than whites, according to the study The Entrepreneur Next Door.

Below are more key findings from the report:

Age and gender significantly predict whether individuals initiate efforts to start a new business. The highest prevalence rate for both men and women is among those 25-54 years old. Young men (18-24 years old) and middle-aged men (35-54 years old) have seen a slight increase in activity. Three out of every 1,000 women over the age of 65 are involved.

Ethnic background influences the likelihood individuals will attempt to start new businesses. Among those 18-64 years old, black men and black women are about 50 percent more likely to try to start a business than white men and women. The prevalence rate for Hispanic men is about 20 percent higher than for white men. Hispanic women are about equally likely to be involved in starting a business as white women, but less likely than black women.

The abundance of education and training programs available to assist start-ups attests to the influence schooling has on the prevalence rates of nascent entrepreneurs. Individuals who finish high school and complete some additional education or training are more likely to be involved in the entrepreneurial process.

Like education and age, an individual’s household income influences the likelihood that they will start a new business. Individuals with higher household income are more likely to participate in start-up activities. The prevalence rate for individuals with up to $15,000 in annual household income is 3.1; for those over $75,000, the rate is almost three times greater, 8.2.

Weekly Wisdom from Kauffman is a regular feature on eMed highlighting insightful research from the Kauffman Foundation. Do you have a favorite Kauffman research insight that could help life science entrepreneurs? Send it to mailto:emededitor@kauffman.org.

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